A Political Science lecturer at the University of Ghana, Professor Joseph Atsu Aryee, has intimated that, the flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), John Dramani Mahama is still in a dilemma over whether to accept the results of the 2020 elections which took place on December 7, as announced by the Electoral Commission or not.
Speaking in an interview, Professor Aryee indicated that, the former President, John Mahama’s behaviour towards the results shows that the party is in a dilemma and urged that, he must head to court to address all grievances and stop questioning the integrity of the judiciary.
“The flagbearer of the NDC is in a peculiar situation. One, he was a presidential candidate, and he is also a former president and commander of the army. It is up to him. He is now saying that he wants a forensic audit and he also wants an independent audit, and if these things are done, he will concede defeat.
“And that gives you the impression that the NDC itself is in a dilemma whether to accept the results or not to accept the results, because of the closeness of the margin of the results. That is why tension has been up. So, he must gather evidence and go to court.”
Touching on anomalies relating to the results in the just ended election, Professor Aryee urged that, the Electoral Commission meets with stakeholders to find solutions to issues emerging from the elections.
He however, supported John Mahama’s view on the fact that, there are lessons to be learnt from the outcome of the polls which will in turn help deepen Ghana’s democracy.
“If you listen to what John Mahama said in the voice of America interview, he said the EC should set up an independent audit and they themselves will conduct a forensic audit before he will accept the results.
“And he made a very important point that he wants lessons to be learned which should guide the country in subsequent elections. I think it is a very important point.”
On Wednesday 9 December, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo was declared the winner of the 2020 presidential election by the Chairperson of the Electoral Commission, Jean Mensa after he defeated his rival, the flagbearer of the NDC John Dramani Mahama in a very tight competition as the nation went to polls on December 7.
The opposition NDC have publicly disclosed that they are not going to accept the officially declared results by the Electoral Commission, with claims that the results have been riddled with irregularities.
The Flagbearer of the NDC, John Dramani Mahama, in a press conference after the declaration, posited that he together with the party were not going to accept fictionalized results of a flawed election after refusing to concede defeat, adding that, all legal avenues available to overturn what he described as the flawed elections will be explored.
The Electoral Commission also in response to this claim asked affected parties to seek redress using the right and lawful processes.
